Brigade Tactical Group

[jaxenro]

No it’s Russia’s army I am just trying to get close. Maybe some variance based on how they are scraping things together today but close

[chrisswim]

As I recall from my book on the Soviet Army….
In MRD, the tanks were platoons of 4, x 3 +1 13 to the company. 3 of those is 39, add 1, = 40.
There was also the Independent Tank Battalion, with 5 Cos of 10, = 50 + 1-2.

[panzergator]

Yes, Chris, you are correct, as I have said in my last two entries, BUT IT CHANGED IN THE '90s! But let me RESTATE.

The standard Soviet/Russian tank battalion, historically, was 3 tanks per platoon, three platoons per company plus a tank for company headquarters, and three companies per battalion plus a tank for battalion headquarters, for a total of 31 tanks. Sometime in the late '60s/early '70s, the tank platoon of the tank battalion in the MOTORIZED RIFLE REGIMENT (BUT NOT THE TANK REGIMENT) was CHANGED TO FOUR TANKS PER PLATOON, which meant that the TANK BATTALION IN A MOTORIZED RIFLE REGIMENT had FORTY TANKS. This organization existed in the '70s and most of the '80s.

It was CHANGED, however, again in the '90s. Tank battalions throughout the Russian Army were standardized in both motorized tank regiments and motorized rifle regiments UNIFORMLY with THIRTY-ONE tanks. No more platoons with four tanks. Only 3-tank platoons in the Russian Army.

For thirty years, it's been 3 tanks per platoon, three platoons per company, three companies per battalion.

Independent tank battalions may have 3 to 5 companies, but the platoons only have 3 tanks.

Your reference is outdated.

[jaxenro]

So I have been doing a lot of online research (always risky) and I think I have a handle on this

A platoon always consists of three tanks so a platoon = 3 tanks

A company is three platoons plus one command tank so a company = 10 tanks

A normal tank battalion in a tank regiment has three companies plus a command tank so a normal tank battalion = 31 tanks

An expanded tank battalion used in a mechanized infantry regiment has four companies plus a command tank so a expanded tank battalion = 41 tanks

A tank regiment has three tank battalions 93 tanks so a tank regiment = 93 tanks

(I don't know if there is a regiment commanders tank to make it 94 )

A mechanized infantry regiment has one expanded tank battalion so a mechanized infantry regiment = 41 tanks

I have updated my chart will still be swapping some material in and out

** The mechanized infantry regiment has 41 tanks not by changing platoon or company size but by adding a company to the battalion **

[panzergator]

Yes, but the expanded tank units were discontinued in the '90s. ALL tank battalions, including those on motorized infantry regiments, are 31 tanks.

[jaxenro]

As long as I keep the companies to ten tanks I will be good as I don’t plan large formations yet

Russian tactical doctrine is changing due to actual conditions there is an interesting article on it here:

https://mwi.usma.edu/the-russian-way-of ... he-making/

I know it is common today to deride the Russian military but there is a lot of thought being put in on their side on how to counter the increasingly technology driven battlefield

I thought this interesting

“ Russian military thinkers envisioned a future war in which linear contact warfare would occur only at specific locations, and nonlinear combat along most of the front, with effects substituting for troop concentrations in order to establish a main effort”

I know I am going to add in helicopters to my mix even though they aren’t technically attached but how do I add the impact of drones to the battlefield?

Ps: this one is interesting also

https://static.rusi.org/403-SR-Russian- ... -final.pdf

[panzergator]

The Russians had to overcome a lot of bad political decisions of the 1930s and make considerable adjustments. It should be kept in mind that both Napoleon and Hitler had forces on the outskirts of Moscow before they were defeated. The circumstances were different, of course. Putin has much of the same to overcome. The Russians play a long game and can likely outlast Ukraine. They also rely on numbers to make up for a lack of training. I expect we will see organizational and tactical changes as well as more discerning selection of senior officers. Too many spokespeople in the West are not thinking like Russians when they spout off. I suggest you wait and observe. There is no predicting. Most information is bad and it is impossible to discern.

General Donn Starry used to talk about the "come as you are" war. Clearly, the Russians were not ready. No armies are. Each war is unique and armies must adjust. The situation is still devveloping.

[jaxenro]

Agreed it is developing and we also need to take the long game. I also think war has a way of attriting inefficient officers

Oddly enough Russia seems to be learning and adapting to 2023 warfare. They still have operational, equipment, and training issues but they are developing tactically. Ukraine, and I could be wrong, seems at present to be relying on superior western equipment but so far I am seeing less tactical adaptability. Satellites and drones have changed warfare and the fact that a Leopard II is better than a T-72 , or a Bradley over a BMP-3, may mean less than people think

[jaxenro]

This one also references a 4 company battalion in infantry units

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=pGGKDU4plgU

[panzergator]

Perhaps they took a page from our J series TOE and went to a 4 company tank battalion. I think we should have kept ours.

[jaxenro]

So are you know buying into the four company model for mechanized infantry being used?